GameStop to Close 120 Stores - Expand Into Non-Gaming Fields

GameStop, as the name would imply, has traditionally been a store where you stop to buy games. But, in this world dominated by digital distribution and Amazon, good ol' brick-and-mortar stores like GameStop are becoming increasingly irrelevant. In order to combat this, GameStop CEO Paul Raines has announced the dawn of what he is calling "GameStop 3.0," a new phase of the company's lifespan that will see it aggressively expand its footprint into gaming-adjacent tech fields.

Unfortunately, this new initiative will result in a slight shift in focus away from video games, with somewhere between 120 and 130 of its 6,457 GameStop-branded gaming retail locations to close worldwide.

The two biggest fields GameStop is pursuing right now are mobile and Apple devices. While it already buys back smartphones and tablets at its GameStop locations, the AT&T-branded chain Spring Mobile and Apple retailer Simply Mac will be at the forefront of GameSpot 3.0.

GameStop plans to open between 200 and 250 Spring Mobile stores this year, more than doubling the 164 locations it had last year, while Simply Mac will see another 20-25 stores opened in markets underserved by Apple's own retail chain. Raines claims that GameStop is already the third-largest and fastest-growing AT&T retailer in the US.

But it isn't all doom and gloom for the video game shop, as Raines did say that he expects the console gaming space to total $18 billion by the end of 2015.

What do you think of retail gaming stores like GameStop? Is it nice to have a place to go to leisurely browse through games, or should they just go the way of the dinosaurs already?